Lawn Tennis.

[By Huka.] The Wellington Association meets next week for its annual general meeting, ' and it is to be hoped that delegates will take a lively interest in the affairs of the sport, so that a good start can be made for the season. Something definite must be done about securing grounds, and as the association has been offered a ground in Leraud-street, upon which twenty j courts can be put down, delegates could i not do better than visit the site and see Mho position for themselves. If the offer has not been already accepted, no time should be lost, as it is impossible to secure a more suitable ground any nearer to the city. Interclub matches could be played at the ground on Saturdays and Wednesdays, and as half an hour will bring players from the centre of the town, evening play can be indulged in. Of course a considerable amount of money will be required to level and put down courts, but that happens with any site. The association now has its chance, and it will be wise to promptly settle the matter and obtain possession. For this season, at anyrate, and possibly for many seasons to come, the Day's Bay Courts should be secured, and any other spots where the game can be played. A lookahead policy must be adopted if the 6port is to advance. Interclub matches. — It has been, often suggested that best of 17 games for seniors is not sufficient, and the association should seriously consider the playing of singles best of three sets during the months before Christmas, and the doubles best of three sets after the RoliSenior players have given up a lot in the past for the sake of inter-club matches, and it is not reasonable to think that a player who can get from eight to ten sets during an afternoon on home courts is. going to travel for simply two sets best of 17 games. The matter requires careful handling, and whilst also supporting the argument that the more expert playqrs should assist the sport generally, one cannot get away from the fact that players are human, and cannot continually give up self benefits for the sake of assisting others to become better players. There should be 6ome give and take on both sides. The juniors should not look upon the matter as though it were an advantage to the seniors, as without the seniors the sport would be on a lower plane than it is at present. Players must be given a chance to get in good solid practice if they intend playing at tournaments, and the tournaments are very few and far between where the best of 17 games are played. Really it is no test, and it would be better to play two sets straight for each match in interclub matches, and decide the contest on the number of sets won — in the event of a tie in sets by the number of games won. It would be more interesting, of more benefit to the players, and possibly make the contests more of an inter-club matter than what they are at present — a contest of individuals. DAVIS CUP MATCHES. America has started well in securing the two singles, Clothier and Lamed being the players to put the Englishmen — Dixon and Parke-^out. Lamed is a brother of the champion, William A. Lamed. The latter is not likely to play much this season, having been suffering with water on the knee. The American!) won easily, and unless something of a surprise takes place should secure the other two singles and the doubles without much trouble. America intends making a determined bid for the cup this year, and Dwight F. Davis, the donor of the Davis Cup, has taken up the game again. If he can strike his form of 1904 some strenuous tennis will be seen. He made- it known that he would do his share of going forth to reoapture the "ashes." America will have D. F. Davis, E. P. Lamed, Clothier, Karl Behr (the most brilliant of American players), N. W. Niles (an inter-collegiate champion), E. P. Lamed, and Wallace Johnson (last year's school champion). The four last mentioned players all made their mark at school tennis, and if the Davis Cup is ev-er won back to America Jw._i.hft £i 4' p^-jwhoolr-Jjlood.-Jho-mpr,^!

will be obvious. The Americans reckon Behr is good enough to beat either Brookes or Wilding, as ho has improved greatly since the time he nearly beat the Victorian at Wimbledon two years ago. Niles is a great dasher, especially good at volleying ; he goes for his smash every time, and would be a great attraction with Behr. F. B. Alexander is putting on flesh, and has not taken tennis seriously since he played in tho Riviera. Whitman is. still good m doub'os, and Dabney, a colt, is^ spoken of as a fine partner for Niles in doubles. America is preparing to win that cup, and the Australians in. Sydney are doing their best to kill Australasia's chance by fighting New Z_ealand,_ and declining to have the Dominion's rights acknowledged. Since the above was written tho news has arrived that America won all five matches against the British Isles. America is therefore the challenger, and will no doubt send out a very strong team to make the attempt of lifting the cup from Australasia. The contest will take place in Sydney during the latter part of November, and unless Australasia can put seasoned players in the field America will come out on top. So far the Australasian team has not been picked ; it will require all the practice it_ can get to stand against the combination of America. The Australasian Association is simply bluffing-, or trying to bluff, New Zealand over the Davis Cup affairs. The argument used is that New Zealand has not brought down any serious reason why it finds it impossible to rejoin the Australasian association. This is only a pretext, as repeatedly the New Zealand Association has objected to be classified simply as a State association. If Australia will not see it, then New Zealand must allow her to go on her own, and defend the cup the best way she can. It ia not likely that any New Zealander would assist Australia, even if they were chosen and had the permission of New Zealand to do so, after Australia's blocking tactics. Australia wishes to mix up the Davis Cup contest with all the affairs i of Australian tennis, and that is not businesslike. New Zealand must now fight the matter out, even to the extent of claiming her share of the profits secured from the last contest. Australia will not do herself any good by refusing to recognise the rights of the Dominion. Were New Zealand's request looked upon in the proper way, tennis in Australasia — and Australia in particular — would be all the better for it. The Taranaki Association has now twelve olubs and 595 players affiliated. The return shows an increase of 24 players as compared with last year. COLONIALS ABROAD. Stan Doust -won the Midland Counties Championship, in which were Parke, Dixon, and Crawley — the representatives of the British Isles for the Davis Cup. Dousfc beat Parke, the Irish champion, easily in the final, 6—2, 6^-0. A. Wallis Myers partnered Doust in the doubles, and they beat F. L. Risely and C. P. Dixon in the semi-final, 12 — 14, 6—l (retired). Dixon snapped a tendon below the knee in the second set when Doust and Myers led, 4—l, and could not move about in the two following games. In the final against Parke and Crawley, the Australian and his partner led 5—3, but Myers played slackly, and the set went to the first-mentioned pair, 7—5.7 — 5. It was mainly a contest of volleys between Parke and Doust. The seccfad sot went likewise at 11 — 9. In the final set Doust led, 5—35 — 3 and 40 — 15, but he made two double faults, and then tiring seemed to take a spell, which was fatal to himself and partner, as they never got going again. T. R. Quill, of Canterbury, played, and after getting through the first round was beaten by A. E. Crawley, 4—6, 6—3, 6-71. Dou&t and Mrs. O'Neill were beaten in the semi-final of the combined. In the handicap singles Quill on scratch was beaten in the second round; J. C. Parke owed 15 3-6, C. P. Dixon owed 30 1-6, and W. C. Crawley owed 15. Quill won the second-class handicap singles at Norwich, beating Pratt in the semi-final, 6—4,6 — 4, 4—6,4 — 6, 6—2; and Shepherd in the fijial, 7—5, 6—l. H. A. Parker and Miss Hitchings were beaten in the semi-final of the combined handicap (owe 2—6),2 — 6), 6—2,6 — 2, 6—4,6 — 4, by a pair receiving 15 5-6. Miss Hitchings, an ex-New Zealand champion, visited New Zealand two years ago, and played at the Ne'v Zealand championships at New Plymouth. IRISH CHAMPIONSHIP. J. C. Parke won the Irish championship, beating Beamish, 6—3, 6—4, s^—6, 3—6, 6-^4 in the final. Doust, Parkpp, and Quill entered. Quill went our, in the first round to Scroope, 7—5, 6—3, 6—4. Stokes beat Douot in the third round 6—o,6 — 0, 6—l6 — 1 retired — and tben Parker fell to Beamish in the le^i-fiuai, 6-~1, 6— x, 5—7, 6—B, 6—3. In the doubles Parker and Doust /ctired to Powell and Quill in the semifinal, but the latter pair were beaten in the final easily by Parke and Stokes. Parker and Miss E. Taylor got as far as the semi-final of the combined and were then beaten by Parke and Miss Holder. The three championships were won by Parke,! the Irish player. In the handicap he owed 30 and beat Quill (scr.), 7— -5, 4—6, 6—l. Parker owed 30, and after getting through two matches retired. L. O. S. Poideyin, the Sydney player, won the championship of East Yorkshire, but was beaten in the semifinal of the doubles, 3—6,3 — 6, 9—7, 6—3,6 — 3, by the Yorkshire pair, E. and S. Watsou. H. L. Dohorty won the Nottingham championship, beating Dr. Eaves in the final. 6— 3, 6—4. R. F. Doherty and Mrs. Winch beat Hillyard and Mrs. Hillyard, 6—B, 9—7, 6—l in the combined doubles. The brothers also secured the Invitation Doubles, beating Hillyard and W. C. Craw Fey in the semi-final, 3—6, 7—5, 6—l, 7—5, and Gore and Eaves m the final, 13—11, 6—2, 10—8. The ex-ohampions showed that they had not lost their cunning, and played quite up to their old form. In the opinion of many H. L. is likely to play better than ever, provided he gets serious practice.' M. J. G. Ritchie won the European championship, and also the championship of Northumberland, and with Adams the doubles championship at the Newcastle£l £ ne tou . rnament - Barnes and Prebble beat Ritchie and Gore in the invitation doubles, 6—2;6 — 2; 7—5.7 — 5. The Australasian's writer, "Half Volley, ' remarks that the Australasian Association was properly formed and constituted in 1904. He does not say that it was the New Zealand Association which moved in the matter so that a team could be sent to compete for the Davis Cup, nor does he explain that it was not formed on the lines suggested by New Zealand, but on a basis that New Zealand declined at first to agree to, and only accepted so that the Davis Cup team could be sent to England. . She only joined on condition that she could withdraw at any time, and that the fact of her joining would not be taken advantage of in the future. Surely it would I(ave been fairer for "Half Volley" to give his readers both sides of the question. It is all very well for him to argue that all the acts of the Australian body have been intra vires, but if New Zealand is not associated with the next Davis Cup contest as a part of the nation, it may astonish Australians to lind that they are not recognised as a nation — it would be a very easy method for some nation to adopt for getting the cup away from "down under." Then "Half Volley" argues that it does not matter whether New Zealand is in or out of the Australasian Association— the latter body being the recognised representative, and New Zealand's champion (Mr Wilding) could be called upon by that representative body to play. "Half Volley" forgets that Air. Wilding is a New Zealandor, and New Zealanders are loyal to their own countiy, more especially when their country has right upon its side. It is almost safe to predict that Australia will lose the Davis Cup, possibly without playing a match, if New Zealand's proposals are not accepted. Australia wishes to class the Dominion as one of her States, her ohief argument being that it is not practical to form an association to govern and control the international matches solely. Why? Were that done, a distinct balance-sheet would have to be brought down, whereas now it is mixed up with other Australian business; but there is no difficulty in doing this, and both countries would htivo a clear understanding in regard to Davis Cup receipts and expenditure. It <t> to be hoped that New Zealand will fight